That's right; I'm publically admitting of having been one of "those" teen girls. One of those teen girls who loves to talk. One of those teen girls who loves to say "like" a lot.
This has led me to believe that when it comes to simplifying content to be more easily understandable and versatile, teenage girls are actually geniuses.
Consider the many different meanings and connotations teen girls have managed to pack into the single, simple and efficient word "like"...
"I like to dance" Synonym: enjoy.
"It was like he wanted to get hit". Synonym: "as though"
"It was like a two-year olds day dream" Synonym: "Similar to"
"Like, what's with that?" Synonym: "I mean"
"And I was like, what the hell?" Synonym: "was thinking and also giving the impression that I/you/ze was thinking"
"Is he like, an idiot or something?" Synonym: well actually in this case you don't really need the word at all. BUT... it gives the impression that the speaker is putting into question the statement that she is making so as to leave room for differing opinions... how very cosmopolitan and open-minded of you, teen girls....
(Another example of this)
"He's like an imbecile, eh?"
People tried to reform my teenage girl oattern of speach, telling me I sounded unintelligent. But who decides what intelligence is anyway? I sounded like what I was; a teenage girl. And how that became synonymous with unintelligent is another post all together.
Showing posts with label women's rights. Show all posts
Showing posts with label women's rights. Show all posts
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Bella gets older, gains spine
I'm sure you have all at least heard of the Twilight series books and movies coming out. You know the deal: girl falls in love with vampire, he falls in love with her, chaos ensues.
Reading the books I was struck by how abusive many of the relationships are.
Apparently we are supposed to quietly smile and accept it when author Stephanie Meyers writes that the werewolf's girlfriend Emily is permanently scarred from her fiance, who lost control just once.... And he feels really bad about it and anyway she loves him so it's ok, right?
Or what about Jacob, Bella's best friend, who tells her that Bella should kiss him like she means it or else he'll kill himself?
This classic case of emotional abuse ends not in Bella telling Jacob exactly where to shove it, but in her kissing him and realising just how much she really loves him.
In my books, this is not the way that story would end.
Bella would tell Jacob that if he wants to be emotionally abusive, she will not have any part in it.
Vampire boyfriend who seems ready to off himself at the slightest sign that Bella isn't doing well would also be history.
Sure, it would be painful.
Bella might even cry a few tears.
But in the end she would know that despite the pain, having a full and abuse-free life is well worth it.
After all, teenage angst can only last for so long.
Reading the books I was struck by how abusive many of the relationships are.
Apparently we are supposed to quietly smile and accept it when author Stephanie Meyers writes that the werewolf's girlfriend Emily is permanently scarred from her fiance, who lost control just once.... And he feels really bad about it and anyway she loves him so it's ok, right?
Or what about Jacob, Bella's best friend, who tells her that Bella should kiss him like she means it or else he'll kill himself?
This classic case of emotional abuse ends not in Bella telling Jacob exactly where to shove it, but in her kissing him and realising just how much she really loves him.
In my books, this is not the way that story would end.
Bella would tell Jacob that if he wants to be emotionally abusive, she will not have any part in it.
Vampire boyfriend who seems ready to off himself at the slightest sign that Bella isn't doing well would also be history.
Sure, it would be painful.
Bella might even cry a few tears.
But in the end she would know that despite the pain, having a full and abuse-free life is well worth it.
After all, teenage angst can only last for so long.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Choices choices?
"HIV/AIDS can be prevented with the proper lifestyle"
"If you are faithful or abstinent, you won't get HIV"
Do these messages sound familiar? Pop culture-- funded and abetted by USAID's so called ABC funding criteria that only gives money to organisations that encourage Abstinence, Being faithful and Condoms (in that order)-- puppet these sayings again and again as if they have legitimacy for women's lives across incredeibly diverse cultures and countries all over the world.
When I heard Dr. Carr asking us at the OHTN conference if people from various cultures really have the choices this kind of message implies, I immediately thought of some of my friends in South Africa. My friend "Karabo," as we'll call her, confided in me that she wasn't certain if her fiance was being faithful to her.
"Karabo!" I said, immediately concerned, "If you're not sure that he's being faithful to you, you have to use condoms."
"Girl," she sighed, "I can't. I've dated him since we were both in high school. If I start asking him to use condoms now he will wonder why. He'll think I'm not being faithful."
This kind of situation is exactly what Dr. Carr is referring to.
The spread of the HIV/AIDS virus is more than a series of bad "lifestyle choices" by people across the globe. Rather, HIV/AIDS reveals people's vulnerability and their lack of power much more than it does their personal choices.
Take the example of the countless women who are victims of rape in conflict zones. HIV/AIDS in this situation can hardly be seen as a consequence of lifestyle. Instead, it shows the lack of respect for women's rights that soldiers and indeed the entire institution of revolutionary groups have. The spread of HIV/AIDS through rape also highlights the vulnerability of certain women more than others; those women that can not escape conflict zones when war breaks out often have less money, and most certainly lack the protection of a strong state system that could protect them.
The issues surrounding HIV/AIDS are complex. It is not fair to blame people who have the virus with poor lifestyle choices. More relevant is to examine the factors that have created such a vulnerability to contracting the virus, and to work on destroying these disempowering structures.
"If you are faithful or abstinent, you won't get HIV"
Do these messages sound familiar? Pop culture-- funded and abetted by USAID's so called ABC funding criteria that only gives money to organisations that encourage Abstinence, Being faithful and Condoms (in that order)-- puppet these sayings again and again as if they have legitimacy for women's lives across incredeibly diverse cultures and countries all over the world.
When I heard Dr. Carr asking us at the OHTN conference if people from various cultures really have the choices this kind of message implies, I immediately thought of some of my friends in South Africa. My friend "Karabo," as we'll call her, confided in me that she wasn't certain if her fiance was being faithful to her.
"Karabo!" I said, immediately concerned, "If you're not sure that he's being faithful to you, you have to use condoms."
"Girl," she sighed, "I can't. I've dated him since we were both in high school. If I start asking him to use condoms now he will wonder why. He'll think I'm not being faithful."
This kind of situation is exactly what Dr. Carr is referring to.
The spread of the HIV/AIDS virus is more than a series of bad "lifestyle choices" by people across the globe. Rather, HIV/AIDS reveals people's vulnerability and their lack of power much more than it does their personal choices.
Take the example of the countless women who are victims of rape in conflict zones. HIV/AIDS in this situation can hardly be seen as a consequence of lifestyle. Instead, it shows the lack of respect for women's rights that soldiers and indeed the entire institution of revolutionary groups have. The spread of HIV/AIDS through rape also highlights the vulnerability of certain women more than others; those women that can not escape conflict zones when war breaks out often have less money, and most certainly lack the protection of a strong state system that could protect them.
The issues surrounding HIV/AIDS are complex. It is not fair to blame people who have the virus with poor lifestyle choices. More relevant is to examine the factors that have created such a vulnerability to contracting the virus, and to work on destroying these disempowering structures.
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